Adventures in Babysitting
by ReadOutLoud284
Summary: What happens when Fang is left alone to babysit his four-year-old daughter? Find out! Mostly Fang's p.o.v., a little bit of Max's p.o.v.  P.S. Rated T just a ittle bit of cursing later on!
1. Good Luck, Fang

A/N: This is my first story, and I hope y'all like it. Constructive Criticism :) = Flames = :( But it's your review, so say what you want to, but I'm not a big fan of them. If it's a little OOC, I'm sorry, but I'm trying! ;)

Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride. I am nowhere near that brilliant!

Summary: When Max goes out for the night, Fang has to watch four-year-old Charlie! How will he deal with a child all by himself?

Ages: for the story:

Fang, Max, and Iggy: 25

Angel: 16

Nudge: 22

Gazzy: 18

Charlie: 4

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Max's point of view

Fang thinks he knows everything. Always has, always will. Yeah, right. But I guess that's just the way he is. Actually, I know it's the way he is. That's what growing up with each other can do to you. You grow to really know each other and most things about them. And with that knowledge of him, it is my humble opinion that it's time someone teach him a lesson. And that someone will be me. On the bright side, he won't even know I'm doing it.

I'm going to use one of our routines against him, and it's a routine he's come to know and love. You see, every third Friday, Nudge, Angel and I go to a movie and to dinner and a movie. I guess after living together for so long, you grow to miss each other more than you think you will. So we have to catch up at some point. It just doesn't seem like it's been as long as it has. I mean, Angel and Gazzy share an apartment (that we help finance since they are so young), Iggy is married with an expecting wife, and Nudge is engaged. I don't especially support Gazzy and Angel's decision, but they live close and can make their own choices. Anyway, Fang and I have been married for six years now. We married early, knowing that we were meant to be together. Besides, if you know for sure, why wait? We have a four-year-old daughter, Charlotte, who we call Charlie. She is absolutely adorable, as most children are in their mother's eyes, but also a handful, as most children are to everybody's eyes.

Normally, I call Iggy to come stay with Fang and Charlotte. He is great with kids. Don't think I don't trust Fang with Charlie. I know that he can handle her antics. I just don't think it's going to be easy on him. I called Iggy earlier and told him to stay home tonight. When he asked what he should tell Fang, I told him to blame it on his wife; say she wasn't feeling well. Besides, she's pretty far along in her pregnancy, so it probably won't be a lie. Fang thinks Iggy just comes to hang out, which is partly it, but he's also a precaution.

Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Fang won't have any problems, and Charlie will be a perfect angel. The odds are against her being as sweet has she could potentially be, though. At four, she already has my stubborn attitude. Plus, she has a secret weapon. Fang may seem hard and tough, but is a big softie around her. He just can't seem to say no.

It's about six o'clock, meaning it's time for me to head out. I wait by the door, knowing that it won't be long before Fang and Charlie come to say good-bye.

"Mommy!" She yells, running up and jumping into my arms for a hug. I spin her around before setting her down, smiling as she giggles in delight.

"I'll miss you, and I love you." I whisper in her ear.

"Love you, too Mommy!"

I let a small gasp of surprise as Fang sneaks up behind me and kisses my head. "Love you," he whispered, almost silently.

"Love you, too. You have everything under control?"

"Of course. Don't worry, and have fun."

Fang can be so sweet sometimes; it almost makes me want to call Iggy and tell him it's okay to "hang out" tonight. Unfortunately for Fang, I said almost.

With one last "Bye!" I leave. Poor Fang will have a hell of a night!

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**Like it? Hate it? Did I do something wrong? Tell me! I'll try and improve it! I also take anonymous reveiws! I'll update this story within the next two weeks. When in the next to weeks depends on how the reveiws and other things work out.**

**P.S. These chapters in the story aren't going to be very long. Actually, the story is probably going to be pretty short! ;)**


	2. Dinner Time

Maximum Ride

RD 3

Ch. 2

Adventures in Babysitting

Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride, and sadly, never will.

A/N: Hope you like this chapter!

Fang's point of view

Tonight, Max is going on her girl's night thing. That's cool; it gives me time to spend with Charlie. Iggy normally comes over, but his wife has his leash pulled tight now that she's in her seventh month of pregnancy. I guess I can't say anything, though. When Max was pregnant, I think all I did was work, take care of her, and sleep (sometimes). But I definitely loved doing it, and I would do it again if I needed to.

Charlie and I can have fun without Iggy, so it's okay that he isn't here. As soon as Max left, I knelt down so I could look Charlie in the eyes. "Well," I told her, "I guess it's just you and me. What do you want to do?"

"Hmmm," she got a thoughtful look on her face before saying, "I'm hungry. I want some chicken nuggets."

Thank goodness! I was worried that she'd want something that was hard to make. All that had to be done for chicken nuggets were to put them on a baking sheet and stick them in the oven for a few minutes. Simple. Easy. "Alright we can do that. You can even help."

"Thank you, Daddy!" I just smiled. For some reason, she loves to put the nuggets on the baking sheet for me. Why she does, I don't know, but it gets her excited. Anything that makes her happy, I can't help but love. The Flock and I never had a normal childhood. You already know that, though. That's one reason I love watching Charlie grow up. She's so happy; it just makes me glad to be her father and to know she has a good life because of me.

When I reached the kitchen, I ran into a slight dilemma. No chicken nuggets. But no problem. I can fix this. There are other simple things I can make. I picked Charlie up and let her sit on the granite counter top. "How about some fish sticks instead?" I asked.

But, of course, life is never as easy as I would like it to be. A small pout crosses her face. "No. I want chicken nuggets."

"We had chicken fingers last night," I tried again. "How about something else?"

"Yes," she said in a matter-of-fact voice. "Chicken _fingers_. I want chicken _nuggets_. See, they are different!"

Gosh, sometimes she was as stubborn as Max. "You should have something different, though! Besides, you haven't had fish in about a week."

"I don't like fish sticks."

"You're right, you love fish sticks!"

"I hate fish sticks." She continued to pout. To lighten her mood, I tickled her tummy. Grudgingly, she laughed, but as soon as I quit, the pout was back.

"How about a sandwich?"

"No, Daddy! Chicken nuggets!"

"Come on, you can have turkey on your sandwich." Look at me, pleading with a four-year-old.

She shook her head.

"Or ham, or," I gave her a secretive smile and dropped my voice to a whisper, saying, "you can even have ham and turkey on the same sandwich. And after… Cookies!"

"Cookies?" she looked hopeful.

"Yep, cookies, but after real food. Your sandwich can be peanut butter and jelly."

Charlie looked defeated. "Promise I can have cookies after?"

"Promise." I said.

"It can be peanut butter and jelly?"

You got it," I smiled, starting the sandwich. She finally looked happy again.

"Here you go, one peanut butter and jelly sandwich, no crust, made special for Ms. Charlotte," I put on a dramatic show for her, making her laugh. Just after she finished giggling, the phone rang. I went to answer it, leaving her on the counter to eat. What a mistake!

* * *

_Crack! _I run back to the kitchen and gasped at the sight of a guilty looking Charlie looking down at a shattered cookie jar.

"Sweetheart," I said, my voice calm. "What happened?"

She shrugged dramatically. "I have no idea! Was it you?"

"Nope. But either way, I guess you can't have cookies now. They're all on the ground and crumbled up."

Tears came into her eyes. "I'm sorry, Daddy. I just wanted a cookie. I didn't know it'd break."

I kissed her head. "I know, and I don't care that the cookie jar is broken. I care that you disobeyed me."

She nodded as I got a broom and dustpan. Luckily, this cookie jar wasn't anything valuable. As I bent to sweep the mess in the dustpan, I felt something weird on my backside. I can't really describe how it felt, but I think I know what happened. Very slowly, I stood up and pulled a slice of bread with peanut butter on it off of the seat of my pants. Apparently her sadness had turned to anger, and now that anger had turned to joy. At this point, all Charlie could do was sit there and laugh.

I picked her up off of the counter top. "Time out, ten minutes in your room. Now"

She scurried away, and I went into my room to change my pants. What other wonderful surprise will this night hold?

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**So... Like it? Hate it? Let me know! And thanks to the reviews, favorites, and alerts that I've gotten! :)**


	3. The Busy Bird

Chapter 3: The Stork

Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride!

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers! I know this chapter is short, but they all will be.

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Fang's Point of View

"Daddy?" Charlie cautiously called from her room.

"Yes, Princess?" My pants were changed, and I was sitting in the living room, waiting on Charlie's ten-minute time out to end.

"When can I come out?"

I looked at my watch. "Seven more minutes."

No answer. Ten minutes must seem like a lifetime, especially to an upset child. I really hate to punish her, but I've got to discipline her somehow. I mean, she can't just run wild! Besides, a sandwich on my butt is really not as funny as she'd like to think it is.

Seven minutes later, I knocked on Charlie's door, not waiting for a reply before walking in. A sad, tear stained face turned to look at me.

"Charlie," I began, sitting on her bed and pulling her onto my lap. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. But you have to understand that when I say no, it means no. Like when I said no cookies till after dinner, you should've listened. Not listening is what started this entire mess. If you would've listened, you could be having a cookie now."

"Yes, sir" she sniffled. "I'm sorry."

"Me too," I hugged her shoulders.

Suddenly, she perked up, obviously feeling better. "Can we play Barbie dolls? Please? I love Barbie dolls, and you can even be Ken!"

"Sure," a small smile played at my lips. "I'd like that." Unlike Max did, Charlie absolutely loves dolls of any kind. Sometimes, small, absent-minded thoughts like those lead to bigger ones, such as now. I wonder if Max would've played with dolls if she'd grown up normally.

The next thing I know, she has a doll with a removable stomach pulled out of her toy box. In other words, a pregnant Barbie. Pregnant dolls! What else will they think of?

Charlie, setting the dolls down, asked, "How are babies made?"

"Huh?" I almost choked on my own saliva, I was so surprised.

"How are babies made?"

"Well," I struggled, trying to remember what people always tell their kids. "The, uh stork brings the baby to the mommy." Yes, remembered it!

"And puts it in her tummy?"

"Yeah, he does."

"How?"

"The stork has a type of magic about him that lets him do things like that." Aren't kids supposed to ask this when they were about six? That means I'm supposed to have, like, two more years to think of an answer!

"Oh, like Santa Clause?"

"Yes, exactly like Santa."

"Well, how do they get the baby out? Do they take the tummy off of the mommy like this Barbie doll?"

"Nope, the mommy just wishes really, really hard for her baby to come out, and the next thing she knows, the baby is in her arms." Look at me; I'm on a roll!

"Makes sense." Charlie said thoughtfully.

"Sure does. You plan the perfect time to make the wish, so you're ready when you want the baby."

"So you and Mommy were ready for me?"

"We sure were. We even prepared for you as much as we possibly could."

"Sounds hard. I'm glad you did it, though."

"Yeah, me too."

"So why does the stork put the baby in the mommy's tummy?"

That caught me a little off guard. How does she come up with these questions? "Well, he has to store the baby somewhere until the parents are ready for it. That way, he doesn't have to carry it around, too. I mean, the stork is a very busy bird.

"He must be. There is a lot of babies out there."

"Sure are, and each baby is special." Suddenly, I cringed, getting a wave of stomach cramps. But they passed as soon as they cam, so I just waved them off.

"Are you okay?" Charlie asked, concern laced through her voice.

I nodded. "Yeah, but I think it's time to play something else."

"What should we play?"

"Hide and go seek." She loved playing hide and go seek with me as much as I loved playing it with her.


	4. Hide and Seek

Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride, and never will. That doesn't mean I don't dream about it, though! :)

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Fang's Point of Veiw

"Sure," her voice grew with excitement. "Can I hide first?"

"Of course you can," You see, I love hide and go seek because of the little disappearing act I like to pull. I let her run around for a bit, trying to find me, before I show myself. She likes it because it provides a challenge, which is good for her. I like it because I can get a small break and play with her at the same time.

"Yay! Okay, remember to count all the way to one-hundred before opening your eyes!" and with those last words, she ran off.

Because Charlie, quite like Max and me, loves to win, I give her about three minutes to hide before walking through the rest of the house, saying very loudly, "I wish I could find Charlie! It looks like she's tricked me once again! Where could she be," I walked past the drapes, which was where she was obviously hiding. "Gosh, I hope I find her before her mommy gets home because she surely won't be happy about losing her baby!"

Charlie giggled at my antics, then gasped, realizing she might've given away her position. I let her stay in hiding a few more minutes before finally opening the curtains.

"There you are," I smiled. "I was starting to miss you!"

She kissed my head and said, "You looked over me a billion times! I swore you were going to find me really soon!"

"Well, you are great at this game! I didn't think I'd find you, either! I got scared for a few minutes, I mean, what if I never found you?"

"I'd have come out eventually. Don't worry!"

"Okay, I won't. But goodness, you hide so well!"

"And now it's your turn to hide."

"I sure hope I can hide as good as you," I say, before disappearing and going to silently sit on the couch. Then, my stomach was cramping again, only worse this time. They didn't stay very long, but I knew something was up. I watched Charlie look in every nook and cranny she could think of for about five minutes. She was getting discouraged. To make her feel better, I hid in the bathroom closet, making myself visible only seconds before she opened the door.

"Got you!" She cried in joy.

Suddenly, I didn't feel so good again. But it was worse than the cramps; I felt dizzy, as if I were going to pass out. I put a hand to my forehead and brought it down wet with sweat. Something is definitely wrong…

Before I had any time to think about it, though, Charlie had tapped my leg, screamed, "Tag, you're it!" and ran out the front door.

I ran outside, screaming, "Charlotte, get back in this house this instant!

After what felt like forever, she finally appeared. I gave her a hard look. "You know not to run outside alone, Charlie! You could've been hurt!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't think."

Once again, I felt bad about hurting her feelings. I softened my face and said, "I'm sorry, I just don't feel too well. How about we have an early bedtime?"

She yawned and nodded.

"Alright, and I'll read you a story, too."

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A/N: I know this is short, even shorter than the others (which are also short). I try to make things longer, but that's not really my strong point...


	5. Time For Bed

Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride.

**A/N: Wow, I thought the last chapter was short, but this is shorter! I'm sorry if you don't like it short, but that's how mine are turning out!**

Fang's point of view

"So, what do you want to hear tonight?" I asked Charlie. Finally, I'd gotten her tucked in, after doing it wrong about three times. Now, all I had to do was read her a story, and then maybe I can get some rest.

"It doesn't matter, read anything." Sounds like she's getting more tired than she is letting on…

I pulled a random book and started reading. But, as soon as I got to page three, I let out a loud yell of "Shit!" and ran to the bathroom, barely making it before vomiting. I know I shouldn't curse in front of my daughter, but I wasn't really concentrating on that at the minute, if you know what I mean.

I sat on the floor, waiting for the dizziness to subside, when I hear an "Oh, shit!" then crying. Looks as if I'm not the only sick one here.

I ran to her room, only to find her sitting on her bed and vomit all over the floor. I sat beside her and gave her a hug. She was crying; she can't stand being sick.

"Baby, it'll be okay," I crooned, trying to calm her down.

She sniffled, mumbling that her tummy hurt. I wish I could take the pain away, so, so bad, but I don't think I can in a situation like this.

"Mine does, too, but it will be okay!"

"Make it stop."

"If I could, I would. The best I can do is to tuck you in again."

"Okay," she whimpered as I wrapped the blankets around her again. After doing that, I turned to leave, only to hear her saying, "Please, don't go!"

"I'll be right back, I'm just going to get something."

"No! I want you to stay with me!"

"I'll be right back."

She gave up. "Promise?"

"Promise."

"Don't take long!" She called behind me.

You probably think that I'm cruel for leaving my sick child alone in her room. I kind of feel cruel myself. But I can't leave vomit all over her floor, and she needs something to puke in just in case.

When I came back, she asked, "Why bring a trash can?"

"This is for you, in case you need to throw up and can't make it to the bathroom."

"Makes sense." Little comments like that remind me how smart she honestly is.

"Sure does."

"Will you stay with me until I go to sleep?" she asked as soon as I finished cleaning.

"Sure," I smiled and turned out the lights. As I sat in the semi-dark room, I went over the events from tonight. Only then did I remember that Charlie had cursed, and I hadn't said anything to her.

"Charlie," I tentatively asked.

No answer. Guess she's sleeping. I'll have to handle that in the morning. As I walk to the couch, I silently pray that Charlie won't curse in front of Max; that'd get us both in trouble!

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A/N: You know what's coming... Please Reveiw!


	6. Surprise!

Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride.

**A/N: Well, it's finally the last chapter. So sad, (sniffle)! Lol! But I seriously will miss writing this. So, since this is the last chapter, I want to know what you've thought of this entire thing! Tell me if you liked it, hated it, anything! NO HOLDING BACK! Oh yeah, I want to thank all of my reviewers, I read them all and enjoyed them, even the ones that weren't so good. Also, thanks to those who read it, even if you didn't review. I do take anonymous reviews, so if you don't want to do it on your account or just don't have one, still review! Anyways, I thoroughly enjoyed doing this story, so who knows, you may see another story of mine somewhere! :-) **

Max's Point of View

Well, tonight was fun. We saw a good movie, had some good food, but all good things come to an end. That's okay considering it's time to see how Fang did.

When I open the door, I notice everything is as it should be. Strange, I swore Fang would have a hard time!

Suddenly, I was snapped out of my shock, by a small, croaking voice calling my name. My gosh, it was Fang, and he sounded horrible!

"Fang? Are you okay?" I walked over to where he was sprawled out on the couch. I hadn't even noticed him! That's not normal; I usually notice everything.

"Yeah, I'm okay. But I missed you."

I gave him a smile. "I missed you, too, but why didn't you tell me you were sick? I never would have left."

"If I had known, I would've said something. But lets not talk about that. Tell me about what's going on with everybody. I want to know how your night went."

"What are your symptoms? We'll talk later, but now I need to know what's wrong with you."

He sighed. "Stomach flu, probably. Charlie is sick too, but she's okay. She is sleeping right now," seeing me take a step toward her room, he quickly added, "so don't disturb her. I don't think I can take tucking her in a billion times again."

So he did have trouble! I was right! "I'll take your word for it. But you sound terrible!"

"I feel worse, if possible."

"I'm sorry. I really wish I could help." I feel horrible about leaving. Even though I couldn't have done anything to prevent it, I just feel like I should have known Charlie and he would get sick!

He gave a small smile. "It's not like it's your fault, so don't worry."

"Do I need to go get anything? Some medicine or something? Gatorade, ginger ale, anything?"

"I'm fine! Besides, you just got back," he changed to where he was sitting instead of laying, and motioned for me to sit. "Now come here and tell me about your night. Besides. If I change my mind and need something, you can go get it in the morning. Just wait a bit."

I sat and pulled his head in my lap, but he moved as soon as I did it.

"What?" I asked, a little hurt. Was I suddenly unattractive to him?

He seemed to realize he'd upset me, because he grabbed my hand and said, "I'm sorry, I don't want puke on you." How cute, he even seemed embarrassed.

I pulled him down again. "I don't care about that type of stuff. You know that."

"Okay, if you say so," he mumbled. I could tell he was glad I'd said that.

"Now I'll tell you about tonight. I know how you like to be in the gossip. Angel said Gazzy was doing pretty good in school. Good grades, handling the stress well." Going to college was kind of a struggle for Iggy, Fang, and me. The three of us are paying for Angel and Gazzy's apartment, food, things Angel needs, and the parts of school that Gazzy's scholarship doesn't cover. It's incredibly hard paying off loans, especially without parents. We don't want the younger ones to go through that.

"Yeah, I talked to him on the phone yesterday. He likes his classes and says the teachers are good. He's not having any trouble understanding the material."

"That's good. Gosh, remember how confused we were in the beginning of college?"

Fang laughed. "I sure do! We were so lost. No idea where we were going, trying to keep a cool head."

"Good times, but anyway, he and his girlfriend are doing good, too, no recent drama."

"Good, I want him to be happy."

"Yeah, and Angel's upset because she doesn't think she'll get a dance to homecoming!" I said with mock horror.

Once again, Fang laughed and said, "I'm sure she will. She can always take Gazzy if worse comes to worse."

Now it was my turn to laugh. "True. She says her friends thinks that he's cute. Nude's wedding plans are coming along great. She wants Charlie to be the flower girl."

"Charlie will love that, she'll get to dress up all pretty."

"She sure will. Sometimes I wish I were better about stuff like that, or at least understood it a little more."

"Don't wish that. You're absolutely perfect the way you are. If you were into all of that, you wouldn't be Maximum Ride!"

"You're so sweet." I took a deep breath. I need to tell him something, something big, but before I can, I'm interrupted by a loud cry of…

Fang's Point of View

"Shit!" Charlie yells. I jumped up, praying Max won't freak out. We both go to Charlie's room, where she'd thrown up in the trashcan. At least she didn't vomit on the floor this time.

Max sat on the bed beside her, comforting her. Once Charlie was calm, Max said, in a very stern voice, "You know not to say that."

I wanted to hear the rest, but I couldn't because I ran to the bathroom to vomit. Gosh, I hate being sick!

After about five minutes, something cool was pressed on my forehead. Max. She was rubbing my back in a comforting way while whispering something I couldn't make out. Finally, I finished puking my guts out. I leaned back to finally take a breath.

"You okay?" she asked from where she was sitting on the floor beside me.

"Yeah, thanks."

"Charlie knows not to curse now."

"Good," I said, cautiously. She should be angry with me right now. Like, REALLY angry!

"I need to tell you something." She looked really self-conscious as she drew in a deep breath.

"What is it? Tell me, it's okay."

"I don't know how you'll react."

"How did you react? I'm sure our opinions will be similar. They usually are."

"I thought it was great, but you may disagree."

"I'm sure it'll be fine."

She took a deep breath, and said, "I'm pregnant."

A slow smile crept on my lips. "That's amazing! When did you find out?" I can't believe that she thought I would be upset about having another child!

She laughed obviously pleased with my reaction. "Today, at my doctor's appointment. They found it in the blood test thins morning."

I hugged her. Chicken nuggets, peanut butter sandwiches, sickness, exhaustion and all, I decided right there that life couldn't get any better. "I love you, Max."

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**A/N: Okay, I'm sorry if it's a little rough, I meant to work on it more than I did yesterday, but I had to stay for the school softball game and I forgot about it until then. Hope you liked it!**


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